ATA Update: Trump, local elections, and Texas Legislature

ATA Update: Trump, local elections, and Texas Legislature

Here are three things you should know to finish your week right:

Trump’s impact on tech in Austin. The next President of the United States, Donald Trump, will be sworn into office on January 20. The change in our Commander in Chief brings a number of questions about what that means for Austin’s tech sector. On January 18, join ATA to hear from Matthew Dowd, ABC News Chief Political Analyst, and a panel of experts on what a Trump presidency means for politics, policy, and innovation — featuring Ainee Athar(FWD.us), Omar Gallaga(Austin American-Statesman), Shalini Ramanathan (RES Americas), and Ian Clarke (The Freenet Project).

Register for the free event here.


Election season is finally over. Last Tuesday was Election Day for Austin’s runoff election, which decided Austin City Council District 10 and two Austin Community College Board seats.

In District 10, Alison Alter defeated incumbent Sheri Gallo, meaning there will be two new Council Members on the dais when Council reconvenes in the new year — Alter and Jimmy Flannigan, who defeated incumbent Don Zimmerman. The Austin Monitor has you covered with more about the District 10 race.


Here comes the Legislature. Texas’ legislative session begins on January 10, and tech-related policy issues are already being debated. Two weeks, the Texas House of Representatives Transportation Committee discussed the policy landscape for autonomous vehicles — check out this Austin Monitor article to learn more.

Legislation was filed in the Texas Senate today to create statewide regulations for Transportation Networking Companies (TNCs). Senate Bill 361, authored by Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Sen. Robert Nichols, sets minimum driver and vehicle requirements, establishes privacy standards, and provides that only the state — not municipalities — can regulate TNCs.

Another issue relevant to the tech community is anti-LGBT legislation and its impact on tech’s workforce recruitment efforts and commitment to diversity and inclusion. Read why Hugh Forrest, Director of SXSW Interactive, is standing up against discriminatory legislation. Or watch the stream from ATA’s November 14 event on the topic, “The Business Case for Equality and Why Tech Should Care”:

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